Before You Believe It

01 Who is speaking?

Before weighing a claim, look at who is holding it.

• Look for a name, a face, an organisation behind the message. Can't find one? That's already an answer.
• Open the profile that published it: how old is it, what else does it post, what does the rest look like?
• Separate the author from the messenger: the person forwarding you the info is almost never the one who wrote it.
• Beware of “a doctor friend”, “someone who works there”: a source you cannot trace is not a source.

Keep in mind : No author, no trust.

02 What's the source?

Swim back up the stream to where the info was born.

• Look for the link to the original document. There isn't one? Search for it yourself with a few precise keywords.
• A screenshot is not a source: find the original post — it may be cropped, doctored, or invented.
• “According to a study” with no study name = red flag. A real study has a title, a date, authors.
• On an unfamiliar site, open the “about” page: who publishes it, from where, since when?

Keep in mind : Trace the source, not the megaphone.

03 What's the date?

A true story from five years ago can become today's fake news.

• Look for a date: the publication date, and the date of the facts. They are often two different dates.
• No visible date? Search the message's keywords: the first publication usually surfaces fast.
• For a picture or a video, a reverse image search shows when it has circulated before.
• Before sharing an alert or an instruction, ask: is it still current, here and now?

Keep in mind : Undated information can be made to say anything.

04 Does the image show what they claim?

A photo proves a scene existed — not that the caption is true.

• Reverse image search: where and when has this image been published before, with what caption?
• Interrogate the frame: what would you see just beside, just before, just after?
• For a possibly generated image: hands, unreadable background text, inconsistent reflections — clues, never proof. The origin remains the real test.
• Keep the two questions separate: is the image authentic? AND does the caption say what the image actually shows?

Keep in mind : An image proves the scene — never its caption.

05 Who else is saying it?

Important news never stays alone for long.

• Take the claim's keywords and search them elsewhere: who else covers it, and what do they say?
• Compare independent sources with each other — not ten copies of the same press release.
• Nobody else mentions it? For a huge fact, that silence is a major clue.
• Cross-check the source itself: what do others say about the site or account publishing this?

Keep in mind : News that stands alone isn't news yet.

06 Too good to be true?

The bigger the claim, the bigger the proof it owes you.

• Measure the promise: “everything”, “never”, “100%”, “revolutionary” — the more absolute, the more suspicious.
• Look at the offered proof: one tearful testimonial and three exclamation marks weigh nothing against a huge promise.
• Ask who would gain if it were true… and why nobody else is talking about it.
• Urgency (“last chance”, “before tonight”) exists to stop you from checking: that's precisely the moment to check.

Keep in mind : Huge promise, huge proof — or no deal.

07 What is it selling me?

Behind many “news items” there's an intention: sell, get clicks, scare, recruit.

• Follow where the message leads: a shop, an affiliate link, a donation form, a subscription, a sign-up?
• Spot the discreet mentions: “sponsored content”, “in partnership with” — often in tiny letters.
• Does the content lean on a strong emotion (fear, anger, outrage) that pushes you to click and share? Emotion is a fuel that sells very well.
• Ask yourself: if nobody clicked, would this message still exist?

Keep in mind : Find what it sells, and you'll know what it's worth.

08 Is the expert really an expert?

A grand title is not a competence — especially outside its own field.

• Check the exact field: a doctorate, sure — in what? And is today's topic inside that field?
• Look for the institution: where does this person work, who can confirm it?
• An “independent expert” is not more reliable by default — independence is not a competence.
• Cross-check against the consensus: what do most specialists of that same field say? A lone opinion can be brilliant or wrong — it gets verified BEFORE it gets shared.

Keep in mind : Expertise has a home turf. Outside it, it's an opinion.

09 Does the number have context?

A number with nothing to compare it to says almost nothing.

• Find the starting point: a percentage change without the initial value is a stage trick.
• Bring it back to scale: “thousands” in a town or across a continent are two different stories.
• Ask who measured: a poll has a sample size, a method, a sponsor.
• On a chart, look at the axis: does it start at zero? Spectacular bars are often born from a cropped axis.

Keep in mind : A number without context is a costume.

10 What if I'm the one who's wrong?

The hardest reflex: fact-checking yourself.

• Notice the pleasure: if a piece of news makes you really want to believe it (or triumphantly right), double your vigilance.
• Deliberately search for what says the opposite — not to punish yourself, to test the strength.
• You shared a mistake? Correct it, simply. Setting the record straight builds your credibility — never the reverse.
• Accept “I don't know yet”: it's an honourable position — often the most honest of the three.

Keep in mind : Double-check whatever proves you right.

And to practise?

Hundreds of interactive training cases, free and without an account, are waiting online — the address is right below this paragraph.

https://avantdycroire.odersa.org

A project by Association ODERSA — open content (CC BY 4.0).